Walk-in product merchandising display coolers are commonly used in retail outlets such as convenience stores and grocery stores to display a wide variety of different types of products to the consumer. A walk-in cooler typically includes one or more consumer access doors that open into the store area to allow a consumer access to products from display racks and associated shelving positioned adjacent the access doors. Such walk-in display coolers also typically include a storage area located behind the display racks which permits both the storage of product to be ultimately placed on the display racks and provides room for employees to fill the display racks from the rear with products stored within the storage area of the cooler.
Products stored in such coolers include bottled and canned beverages which are heavy, cumbersome and have use-by dates which need to be honored in order to provide fresh product to the consumer. Typically, product is stored in the cooler storage area by stacking multiple layers of containerized product on the floor or on fixed position racks or pallets. Storage racks provided in such coolers are fixed both with respect to the floor surface and with respect to the individual shelves associated with the racks. In other words, the racks themselves are non-moveable and the individual shelves associated therewith are typically fixed at one orientation and are not capable of being adjustably positionable into more than one orientation such as a horizontal orientation and a gravity feed orientation. This presents at least two problems. Such storage systems can result in a firstmode of operation which means consumers could be sold outproduct or fresher product first while older product remains buried at the bottom of the stack. Also, the depth (front-to-rear) of the stacks of product is limited because access to rear positioned stacks is inhibited by front positioned stacks whether the stacks are positioned on the floor or on fixed racks or pallets.
Complicating the problem of product storage in walk-in type coolers or other storage space holding areas is the fact that walk-in display coolers tend to have limited storage space therein. Also, this limited space makes it difficult for employees to work and maneuver within the cooler thereby adversely affecting worker efficiency.
Moveable storage rack systems are known in the art. Such systems have one or more racks or shelving systems moveably mounted generally on guides (tracks) and such racks or shelving systems can be moved from side to side to provide access to racks or shelving systems located behind the moving rack(s). Such systems can include several racks positioned in spaced apart relationship from front to back with the back rack usually being fixed and non-moveable. Examples of such systems can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,205,627; 5,943,967; 5,265,739; 5,072,838; and 4,087,765. These patents disclose movable shelving units or racks that move on wheels along upwardly opening tracks such as upwardly opening grooves or on angle member tracks. If an object were to lie or become wedged in the upwardly opening groove, such object might derail the shelving unit during movement thereby causing damage to product and potentially injuring workers. Further, to protect against tipping over, many of the disclosed racks utilize a retention system positioned at the top of the shelves. The shelving system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,205,627 utilizes a bottom mounted anti-tip device and an upwardly opening groove for a track. None of the known shelving systems provide shelf members which are selectively positionable at a plurality of different angular orientations and none are adaptable for use as a product inventory control system as hereinafter described.
Thus, there is a need for an improved walk-in display cooler system which includes an inventory control system that will permit a firstmode of operation for re-stocking product and that can utilize the limited space in the storage area of the cooler more efficiently.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.
The present invention relates to a walk-in display cooler or other product storage area having a movable inventory control rack system that will provide for a first method of handling inventory in the cooler or other product storage area. The present rack system can include a plurality of movable racks and a plurality of fixed racks whereby movement of one or more movable racks provides access to racks located behind a movable rack. The rack system includes floor mounted tracks which guide support wheels mounted adjacent the bottom of the movable rack. Each rack, whether movable or fixed, includes a plurality of upright support structures adaptable for holding and supporting a plurality of shelves or product holding trays therebetween, each shelf or tray being supported by a pair of horizontally disposed front and rear shelf support members which are selectively attachable to elongated posts associated with the upright support structure. The front and rear shelf support members and the upright support structures are provided with cooperating attachment elements for mounting the shelf support members between the upright structures in various orientations whereby a shelf or product holding tray or container can be positioned to hold and store products at different angles relative to the floor surface.
Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.